Currently, a lot of smartphones are getting price increases due to the ongoing RAMageddon due to AI, and we expect that to continue for a few years. As NAND storage and now CPU components are also getting hit.
However, Apple is expected to have an “aggressive pricing strategy” for the new iPhone 18 Pro models when they launch this fall. This comes from a research note with GF Securities, where Jeff Pu did not mention pricing, just that it would be aggressive. This leads me to believe that pricing will remain the same or have a very small price increase.
Currently, the iPhone 17 Pro starts at $1,099 for 256GB of storage, while the iPhone 17 Pro Max starts at $1,199 for the same storage. Both of these have 12GB of RAM, which is expected to remain the same with the iPhone 18 Pro series.
If Apple is able to give us the upgrades we’ve been seeing rumored, and keep the price the same, that would be pretty huge for Apple. And likely allow them to grab a bigger chunk of the US market, which they already are number one in.
Apple isn’t immune to the RAM crisis
Apple said during its most recent quarterly earnings call that it expects “significantly higher memory costs”, so we know they aren’t immune to the RAMageddon. But given Apple’s size and scale, they are likely able to weather the storm a bit better than most Android phone makers.
Just looking at the recent MacBook Air and Pro announcements, Apple actually increased RAM and storage for the same price. And also launched the MacBook Neo, which has PC makers on their heels.
This same analyst said that he expects to see Apple find ways to lower costs of the iPhone components in other ways. Likely with the display and cameras. Which we are seeing with some Android OEMs, like Samsung, which was recently reported to be using BOE for its Galaxy S27 display next year.
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